What Happens When You Finally Stop Trying to Run the Show?
- Author
- Terri Wilson
- Published
- Mon 23 Jun 2025
- Episode Link
- None
Surrendering control might be our most challenging spiritual task, yet it holds the key to authentic freedom. When my podcast opening glitched three times while preparing to discuss control issues, divine humor wasn't lost on me. This synchronicity perfectly highlighted how desperately we cling to the illusion of control, even as life shows us we never truly had it.
My own control patterns developed early as a survival mechanism. As a child feeling dominated by my father's presence, I sought control over my environment with almost obsessive precision. This coping strategy followed me into adulthood, creating suffering whenever life inevitably refused to follow my carefully constructed plans. Sound familiar? Many of us develop similar patterns, believing that controlling our surroundings will somehow protect us from pain or disappointment.
The journey between who we've been and who we're becoming creates a vulnerable space that Bowie described perfectly in Space Oddity: "Here I am floating in a tin can far above the world...and there's nothing I can do." This floating sensation—caught between our old self and our higher self—intensifies our grip on anything that feels stable. Yet truly transformative growth happens precisely when we learn to surrender that grip.
Through my Tai Chi Gong practice, I've discovered three powerful tools for navigating chaos without grasping for control. Figure eights—simple flowing movements that mirror our DNA—help center scattered energy, especially when practiced barefoot in nature. Mala beads transformed my racing "monkey mind" after just seven days of consistent practice, ultimately giving me the gift of mental silence I'd sought for decades. The observer technique—visualizing a mini-version of yourself watching your reactions—creates critical space between triggers and responses, allowing you to choose differently.
Ready to explore your own relationship with control? Join me this week as we examine the roots of control patterns, identify physical and emotional triggers, and practice gentle techniques for releasing our grip on outcomes. The peace waiting on the other side of surrender is worth every uncomfortable moment of letting go.
